Atticus's perception was working in complete overdrive, his mind processing the battle at speeds only someone who had faced death countless times could ever achieve.
Each of Carius's attacks was a blur to the majority of the onlookers watching from outside, but Atticus was reading every move, calculating, adjusting.
He read every single nuance of Carius's movement, his senses completely heightened, and his connection with the space element growing to unimaginable heights.
But as the clashes went on, something felt off.
No matter how perfectly Atticus predicted Carius's strikes or moved to counter them, he was always a fraction of a second behind.
He had always been the one to read people during battles. However, it seemed now as though Carius was the one reading him— anticipating every action before Atticus could even execute it.
Carius attacked relentlessly, flickering in and out of existence, his movements faster than a blink, his sword appearing from different angles with effortless precision.
The coldness in Carius's gaze was unsettling; it lacked any trace of excitement or joy— just calculation.
Soon enough, Atticus felt it again— death.
His instincts flared to life, warning him of the incoming danger once more. He instantly attempted to dodge, darting to the side at superhuman speed. And yet, the blade still appeared inches from cutting his neck.
Atticus's mind raced, trying to process the baffling situation.
'Is it that?' Atticus thought, his pulse calm.
During his training with Magnus, the man had listed down every single known ability of the Dimensari and had Atticus fight a simulated battle with each data. Among those abilities, what was happening fit one of them.
His assumption was soon proven as Atticus saw it— the flicker of light in Carius's eyes.
'Dimensional perception,' Atticus suddenly realized.
His thoughts sharpened as understanding dawned on him. 'He's seeing through multiple dimensions at once, watching me in all of them, and predicting my every move.'
Carius was not simply fast; he was seeing across multiple dimensions at the same time, watching Atticus's movements in each one.
He wasn't just reacting to Atticus's actions— he was seeing all the possible ways Atticus could move before they even happened in the present reality, making it nearly impossible to surprise him.
It was like fighting someone who could predict the future.
Atticus's expression firmed, his katana flashing as he parried a blow to his left. He countered with a powerful horizontal slash, but Carius was already gone.
His form appeared behind Atticus, his blade inches away from severing his spine.
Regardless, Atticus remained calm, Magnus's words echoing in his mind.
"Survive the first strike, identify the ability, then it becomes a process."
The ability had already been identified, and now he began the process.
Atticus's thoughts abruptly shifted to the darkness element, its molecules swirling around him.
In the next instant, he vanished— not just from this world, but from all dimensions.
Carius's gaze narrowed, a flicker of shock crossing his cold, calculating face. He had suddenly lost sight of Atticus completely.
'The darkness element?'
'How many elements does this human have?' Carius thought, his mind working furiously.
Carius had meticulously planned everything for the Nexus event, carefully orchestrating every single detail.
He had anticipated some resistance from the other superior races apexes and had planned accordingly.
However, the lower races, along with the humans, had been so insignificant in his eyes that he hadn't bothered to include them in the calculations. It felt unnecessary.
But now, this human was defying all his expectations, everything coming as a shock to him, a surprise. Carius hated surprises— he hated them to his core. It was maddening.
However, in the next second, it all seemed to get worse.
Carius felt danger.
It was a feeling he had only experienced once in both lives, the same feeling that led to his death before.
His last experience of this sensation was during his previous life, when an entire world had united to kill him.
His lips curled into a snarl as anger rose inside him. He was losing control of the situation, and that made his blood boil.
Atticus suddenly reappeared at his side, his katana flashing as it aimed for Carius's neck.
But then, in an action that utterly shocked Atticus to the core, his blade phased through Carius's form as if he wasn't even there— as though he didn't exist.
Atticus's eyes narrowed. 'Dimensional phasing,' he realized. This was another one of the abilities of the Dimensari. He was hiding parts of himself in other dimensions, making himself untouchable in this one.
It was like he could phase in and out of reality, rendering Atticus's attacks useless.
Carius eyes flashed.
A human, a measly human, was making him feel that again?
Carius's fury peaked.
His weapon trembled with intensity, and his expression morphed into an icy, chilling gaze. His voice echoed through the battlefield, cold and menacing.
"First Art… Dimensional Shred."
The world froze. Time itself seemed to halt as Carius disappeared. For a split second, Atticus's mind scrambled to comprehend the sheer speed, but his instincts kicked in.
Atticus's eyes flared, his body surging with power. His mana burned as he prepared to counter.
Magnus's words… survive, and then it becomes a process.
"Transcendent Slash: Godspeed Grace," Atticus muttered under his breath.
Their auras exploded, their bodies moving faster than the eye could follow. At supersonic speeds, they clashed mid air, their weapons colliding with an earth shattering force.
The clash between Atticus and Carius shattered the stone pathway beneath them, fragments of debris spiraling into the dark pit below.
The shockwave from their collision rippled outward, shaking the arena as dust filled the air. Each apex's eyes locked in a deadly stare as they muttered their next techniques.
"Void Rend."
"Endless Blade."
Atticus's katana gleamed with azure energy, slicing through the air in blinding arcs, while Carius phased in and out of view, disappearing only to reappear behind Atticus, his void like strikes warping the space they passed through.